


Photographs

by SuspiciousLandlady



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, Iron Man (Movies), Iron Man - All Media Types, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, Memories, Photographs, Post-Civil War (Marvel), Sorting out feelings, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony recalling memories
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-04
Updated: 2016-06-04
Packaged: 2018-07-12 03:07:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7082704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SuspiciousLandlady/pseuds/SuspiciousLandlady
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony almost prayed inside his head that he'd find the prints while he moved to the last shelf. He started to look for them, but after moving some of the books what were on his way, one book fell down to the floor and in a respond Tony just groaned, annoyed while picking up the book. He was going to put it back to the shelf when his eyes fell on the surface of it, it didn't look like the rest of them. In fact, when he eyed it and after that opened it, he was surprised that it turned out to be an old photo album. Not old like twenty years, but the pics in the first page of it weren't from this year.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Photographs

**Author's Note:**

> A lot of familiar faces  
> From my past  
> I just tried to remember the names  
> And photos of you and me  
> They brought many memories back to my mind
> 
> And I felt something long ago forgotten  
> Touching me  
> When I got stuck in living room's sofa  
> Watching those photos  
> I was thinking how seriously  
> I did love you at the time  
> Wondering now do you ever  
> Think about me
> 
> Valokuvia - Mamba (Translated lyrics from Finnish to English)
> 
> Don't chew me if there's something what's inaccurate with mcu, I tried my best! This is my first Stony oneshot.

Tony sighed as he walked around the new Avengers headquarter, feeling of loneliness slowly taking all over him and chewing him piece by piece from the inside. The whole place was eerily silent, the ghosts from the past still haunting behind every corner and painting the walls with their painful memories. There was no escape from them, even if he tried to close his eyes and ignore those ghosts from the past. It wasn't the Avengers tower, but lot of stuff from there was brought to the new facility and reminded him about what the Avengers were before the war happened.

It was not a very long ago when this place was full of life, the Avengers changing their headquarter from the tower to the new facility what was created from the old warehouses. How they all had been worked as a team, and even though they might not admit it loudly, they had lived here like a big family. Big and strange family, with their disagreements and weird habits. Bruce was still missing and Thor was dealing with Asgard stuff, but even though they weren't present, the Avengers had felt like a family. Family what was missing a couple of members. 

But now? The family illusion has been teared apart, half of the members seen as the criminals from the eyes of society. The former leader figure, Captain America alias Steve Rogers, leaving the role of leader on to Tony's shoulders and choosing Bucky over him. That was the first thing what came into Tony's mind, he was replaced with an old friend and Steve had left him and the rest of the team behind. He knew somewhere deep inside his mind that it wasn't the reason why the war happened, it wasn't the real reason why Steve couldn't be part of the Avengers. 

Tony knew why they couldn't be the one big team anymore, but it still hurt more than he admitted. It hurt that Steve and half of the Avengers were now somewhere else, leaving the other half behind. The big headquarters felt even more bigger now since there wasn't as many residents as there used to be. But their rooms were still there, full of their own stuff and belongings. 

Things had changed. Not only between him and Steve, but in the whole team too. His feelings toward Steve were confused as hell, he wasn't sure about anything anymore. He felt anger and beyond that was the sadness and disappointment. Maybe jealousy too, but that was another thing what Tony decided to not acknowledge right now.

"Okay Tony, I'll leave now. See you around later", Natasha's voice echoed somewhere in the distance, but Tony was too deep in his own thoughts that he didn't really pay any attention to her. Not that Natasha even waited his answer, she knew how Tony had been lately so into his own little bubble that he ignored almost everyone around him right now. She did understand him and even though she wanted to give him the space and time he needed, it was better to communicate and keep an eye on him.

He was too tired for this right now. He wanted to keep himself busy with his new projects, which was even a surprise that he managed to work with them, but it was a great way to escape from the shitty reality. The only reason why he was wandering around the new facility is because he has a couple of blueprints here but he couldn't quite remember where he had put them. After everything what happened, it was no wonder that he couldn't remember those things. 

Tony had already look over his own room, the master bedroom but he hadn't found them. It was getting frustrating, he wanted to go back to work but instead of that, he was here searching those damn blueprints he had hidden ages ago. 

He was almost desperate to find them, but not so desperate that he'd have gone through the other bedrooms. Firstly, he knew that it was rude to rummage through bedrooms which weren't his owns and secondly, why would he even put his blueprints there? He didn't like when someone disturbed his own personal space, so he respected their privacy as well, even though some of the rooms belongs to the former members.

After searching the blueprints from every possible room, even the kitchen, Tony found himself wandering to the living room and starting to go through the shelves there. He was so busy with his attempt to find the blueprints that he didn't even notice how he was cursing silently under his breath. It was unbelievable how he couldn't find those papers, everything here was well organized but of course when he needed or wanted something, that specific thing was either lost or hidden. Or maybe even stolen, how the heck he would know.

"Unbelievable. This is just unbelievable", he muttered while searching shelf after shelf. No matter how hard he tried to find those damn prints, it began to feel like they were lost completely. Maybe he'd find them later when he wasn't specifically searching them or maybe he would never see them again. Who knows, this feels just like typical Tony Stark luck. No, wait. What luck? He had no luck at all. 

Tony almost prayed inside his head that he'd find the prints while he moved to the last shelf. He started to look for them, but after moving some of the books what were on his way, one book fell down to the floor and in a respond Tony just groaned, annoyed while picking up the book. He was going to put it back to the shelf when his eyes fell on the surface of it, it didn't look like the rest of them. In fact, when he eyed it and after that opened it, he was surprised that it turned out to be an old photo album. Not old like twenty years, but the pics in the first page of it weren't from this year.

The first page was full of pictures of the first moments when they had begun to work as a team, as the Avengers. Group photos, all the familiar faces looking right into the camera and some of them smiling. Thor looking surprised and probably wondering about what the heck is the camera. Bruce and Natasha not so interested about the camera, looking somewhere else but their faces weren't cold or anything, just looking like they were serious. Tony himself looking a little bit gloomy in his Iron Man suit, not in a way like he was pissed off, he just didn't feel like smiling. Clint had a toothy smile on his face, almost grinning like a cheshire cat, looking straight into the camera and Tony could swear that Clint was posing with his bow and arrow. And then there was Steve in his Captain America suit, smiling with his encouraging smile while he still managed to look like a serious leader who was proud of his team. 

Seeing the first page of those kind of group pictures made Tony feel something new, he wasn't sure what it was. It's like it was something he had forgotten, something he hadn't felt in ages. Those old photos were full of different atmosphere, different feelings and dreams. 

He backed and finally sat down to the couch, turning the next page and watching every single photo in the page. More familiar faces but not all of them were pictures from the Avengers at the work. Some of them were taken from their free time, judging by the way a lot of them were taken, Tony guessed that Clint was probably the guilty one. He and his silly things, he could imagine that this had been one of his greatest ideas at the time. Taking pics and annoy all of the team members.

A picture of Thor trying to figure out what to do with something everyday item as toaster, the confusion visible on his face. Picture of Tony working with one of his projects, but he had turned around to face the camera at the same time when Clint had taken that picture and judging by his expression on it, he had realized what Clint was doing. Tony stared the picture for a while, trying to recall that time and somehow he managed to remember it. He had tried to make Clint talk and tell him what the hell he was doing, but had Clint told anything to him? Nope, he hadn't. The memory of that made Tony smile a little bit, it was strange how he could recall something like that but at the same time the feeling was wonderful. 

He kept looking at the pictures and he found himself chuckling to a picture where Clint had taken a shitty selfie, instead of being in the middle of the picture, he was in the corner of it and at the background Thor was sleeping like a baby in armchair, Mjölnir resting on his lap. Next picture was taken from the training room where Natasha and Steve were training and comparing their hand-to-hand combat and skills. The next one was Bruce watching Animal Planet and ignoring Clint completely, focusing only to the lions on TV.

Judging by the background of the photos, most of them were taken in the Avengers tower or in the city. Tony was surprised how much there was pictures with more or less domestic situations. Steve cooking, Thor finally realizing how to use that toaster, Bruce smiling and even watering pot plants, Tony looking like a douche or having sheepish smile on his face, Clint and his ridiculous selfies of himself and with the others. 

While flicking through the album, Tony started to realize what these strange feelings were. Nostalgia and the biggest one was joy. Even though the current situation was shitty and he didn't want to think about it, these pictures were full of different memories, most of them making him feel happy. They were like a quick way to escape the reality, the shortcut he had been searching after the disagreements and the split up between the Avengers.

One page was full of different photos with party theme, they had organized parties and the way some of the pics were taken, it was obvious that Clint wasn't the only one who had taken them. But it didn't matter who had taken them, Tony was already eyeing the pictures. One of the weekend parties, it hadn't been like they were having parties every weekend but these pics were from one of the weekend parties. The reason why he remembered that was because of the picture with him and Steve standing side by side, looking straight into the camera and both of them having a smile on their faces. Of course Steve was smiling with his big ear to ear smile while Tony looked more like he had a shit-eating grin on his face. They both had drinks in their hands and after staring the photo for a while, Tony found himself sighing. 

Even though the page was full of different party photos, Clint and Natasha dancing, Thor eating snacks and Bruce hiding from the camera, the pics of Steve drew Tony's attention. He could feel the emotions washing all over his body, these old photos waking up the feelings inside him what he had been doubted for a while now. Something he had forgotten. The fact that he really did love Steve dearly, that Steve was the most important person in his life. The only reason why he specifically remembered this party was the fact that this was the weekend when he finally realized that he actually was falling in love. Or he had already fell in love with him. 

Tony was in a some sort of haze, just closing his eyes and going back to the time around that weekend. How he had started to realize that those strange feelings back then were in fact him falling in love with Steve. At first he didn't want to believe it, but after he couldn't fight with himself anymore, he finally admitted that maybe he was in love with him. Maybe Steve had grown to be very important to him, maybe he wanted to make sure that Cap will stay happy. 

He flicked through the pages more, recalling the old memories from the pics. So many familiar faces, the pictures full of joy and happiness. Sometimes he couldn't help but chuckle, either because Clint or Thor were doing something strange or funny in the pictures or Clint had taken the worst or the best shot. The more he turned the pages, the more closer to the present the pictures were starting to get. 

Suddenly Tony stopped and kept his eyes on the picture what drew his attention completely. He was surprised that there even was that kind of pic, of him kissing with Steve. He wasn't even sure who had taken it, maybe Natasha because he or Steve hadn't noticed it at all and if it was Clint, Tony just couldn't remember to get Clint caught in the act. It wasn't important, he didn't in fact even care about who had taken it. He just kept staring the picture and he could feel a warm feeling inside his chest. It was like he was feeling again something what he had long ago forgotten. Maybe it was, now he just finally started to realize what he really forgot after the shit hit the fan.

He loved Steve. Tony still loved him. 

There was one pic where Steve was sitting in the car, it was one of the old ones he loved so much and the smile on his face was heartwarming. He was looking directly at the camera and smiling like an angel, like he was the happiest person in the world. Probably at the time when the photo was taken he thought that. Now? Well, not so happy anymore. Neither was Tony, he had been feeling more miserable than he had ever felt. 

"I had already forgotten how you look when you smile that", Tony murmured while he touched the photo of Steve with his fingers carefully, like he was afraid that the photo was going to disappear immediately after his fingers meet it. Steve's smile was so irresistible and Tony started to realize how lucky he had been all the time when the reason why Steve smiled like that was him. He couldn't even count how many times Steve had smiled like that while looking at him, looking right into his eyes with those blue eyes. That loving and tender smile, what he had on his face when he was around Tony. Tony had never seen that smile on Steve's face when he had been talking with someone else from the team.

At first their relationship had been their own little secret, but it'd been hard to keep it as secret and eventually Natasha or Clint found out about it and then the rest of the team. It had been nice relief, even though secret kisses had made them both feel a little bit more excited about their relationship, the fear of being caught making it even more interesting.

Tony kept looking through all of the photos and while he did that, he was overcome by the feel of nostalgia. He was almost reliving those moments and memories inside his head again, feeling the tender feelings and atmosphere in the pics. These pics were making him convinced that the Avengers was more than just a team of heroes. It was really like a family, like a family what was missing in his life. Steve, Natasha, Bruce, Thor and Clint were the original members of this little Avengers family, but after the Ultron episode their family had grew with Wanda and Vision. Also Falcon joined them as well, though at the same time Thor and Bruce left to deal with their own problems, making the team missing big part of them. Like a family missing their members.

Even though Tony was the one who had money enough to fund this little family play, Steve was the leader and also some kind of mother hen, making sure that all his chicklings were feeling fine and no one was left behind. He was the cheesy hero with his faith of good tomorrow but that's the reason why he was the perfect leader figure. When someone was close to lose their own hope, Steve was the one who could courage that person and make them believe themselves again. That's just who Steve is, always supporting while other might have already turn their backs.

Eventually he turned to the next page, but to his disappointment it was empty. An empty page in front of him made Tony feel a little bit sad. It was like a wake-up call to the reality, to the situation now. It was different comparing it to the time when the pics in the album had been taken. After staring the empty page for a while, Tony closed the album and just sat on the couch, his head full of memories and different feelings. This was something he hadn't thought about when he first started to go through the shelves and try to find those damn blueprints, but now he was more than happy to find this photo album instead of the blueprints. Happy that this was the reason why he was stuck in the living room's sofa, flicking through the album. Maybe in the past he had been annoyed that Clint had decided to take pictures and this many too, but now he was more than grateful. They made him recall happy memories at the time when he really needed that and he was left with a lot of feelings.

One thing was sure. Even though the things had changed a lot and the Avengers wasn't the same as it had been before, his feelings for Steve hadn't changed at all. He was still feeling the same as before and he couldn't help with that. Maybe it was some kind of curse, falling in love with him but at the same time the memories of him and Steve together made Tony smile. He really did love Steve. 

And he was wondering now that did Steve think things like these too? Was he recalling all of the good memories of them together?

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone and thank you for reading this oneshot!
> 
> This was my first Stony story ever so I'm sorry if I managed to fail with it. Whoops, I did try my best tho.  
> This fic is built around the song Valokuvia by Mamba. It's Finnish song and the idea of writing this fic came into my mind when we were singing karaoke with my friends and one of the songs we sang was Valokuvia. Me and my friend has a habit of pointing out songs what are great ''OTP songs'' and we've realized that there's many Finnish songs which are perfect for that and we did our typical ''think of your OTP'' while singing this song. The idea of writing this came soon after the song ended. 
> 
> The rest of the lyrics can be read here if you're interested to read the whole lyrics of the song. It's very beautiful song, tho it might not feel as beautiful after translated since it doesn't sound so good as in the language it is written. Anyway, here is the translation to the lyrics, so if you're interested to learn more about the lyrics, read the translation here:  
> http://lyricstranslate.com/en/valokuvia-photos.html
> 
> Anyway, I'll end my ramblings now. I hope you enjoyed this oneshot!  
> Thank you for reading this little story! 
> 
> English isn't my mother tongue so if there's typos and shit, you know what to blame!


End file.
